On the surface, the process of programming and running a show has not changed. You must patch fixtures, create groups and palettes/presets, build cues and execute playback with faders and buttons. DMX is still the primary form of communication (Art-Net and sACN are Ethernet versions), and correct fixture libraries are still extremely important. The process of selecting lights, adjusting parameters with encoders and storing values is still pretty much the same as in 2001. But lighting consoles has improved, and the position is better defined; you can make a career as a lighting programmer. We are also seeing a change in how programming is accomplished, with networked consoles and multi-user programming. The rise in layout/plot views is also removing the necessity of memorizing fixture numbers, and the new systems easily lend themselves to pixel- and video-mapping.
—Brad Schiller, from “Feeding the Machines,” PLSN, Jan. 2017, page 65
